1. Field of Art
The disclosure generally relates to the field of digital media, and more particularly to the field of content distribution.
2. Description of the Related Art
In conventional content publishing systems, publishers of digital media generally structure user interfaces for a specific type of display platform. For digital content intended for viewing on a laptop or a personal computer, the digital media publisher may create a webpage that is adapted for viewing on a relatively large display and that assumes a user will interact with a pointing device (e.g., a mouse, a touchpad) and an alphanumeric keyboard. For digital content intended for viewing on a mobile device, the digital publisher creates a user interface adapted for viewing on a relatively small display with narrow width relative to its height. The interface may assume that primary user interaction will occur through a touch-sensitive display rather than through a separate alphanumeric keyboard. For digital content intended for viewing on a tablet, the digital publisher creates an interface that is adapted for a larger display but that assumes a touch-sensitive display.
To support viewing digital media on different devices, a digital media publisher can create and maintain separate user interfaces specific to a display platform such as, for example, a PC (personal computer) user interface, a mobile user interface, and a tablet user interface. However, the labor requirements for maintaining separate device-specific user interfaces can be burdensome, particularly when the content is updated frequently. Alternatively, a digital publisher may create one or more generic user interfaces designed for viewing across multiple display platforms. Such a strategy eliminates duplicate labor from updating user interfaces specific to various display platforms. A generic user interface, however, does not account for the differing display and input characteristics of different display platforms, so the generic user interface degrades the user experience.